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PM News Links: Cop in shootout with bombers returns to work, Aaron Hernandez appeals murder conviction, and more

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Quoizel Wilson, of Centerville, was convicted today the 2010 murder of 23-year-old Trudie Hall of Nantucket.

A digest of news stories from around New England.



  • MBTA Transit Police officer, who nearly died in shootout with Boston Marathon bombers, returns to work, promoted, on day Dzhokhar Tsarnaev sentenced to death [Boston Globe] Video above


    Aaron Hernandez mugAaron Hernandez  
  • Jury wasn't 'rational,' Aaron Hernandez defense lawyers claim in appeal of murder conviction [Milford Daily News] Video below, photo at left


  • Cape Cod man sentenced to life without parole in 2010 death of pregnant Nantucket woman, 23 [Cape Cod Times] Video below


  • Convicted drug dealer, released in wake of state crime lab scandal, arrested on new charges
  • [Boston Herald]



    Mikhail Young mug 5615Mikhail B. Young 
  • Sudbury man's lawyer says there's 'no evidence' Mikhail Young killed his adoptive parents in Virgin Islands [Metro West Daily News] Photo at right, video below


  • Dudley man held after being charged with stabbing Southbridge man 74 times [Telegram & Gazette]


  • Downeaster traffic doesn't meet threshold for key safety device talked about following Amtrak train crash in Philadelphia, rail official says [Portland Press Herald]



  • New Hampshire Supreme Court rules state's voter registration law unconstitutional [Union Leader]


  • Connecticut high school deems 6 students' dresses inappropriate for prom [NECN]





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  • Amtrak engineer Brandon Bostian cooperative in interview but can't recall crash, NTSB says

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    Brandon Bostian told the National Transportation Safety Board in an interview Friday that he felt comfortable with the train and was not fatigued.

    PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- The deadly Amtrak wreck has made it clear that despite the train industry's widespread use of electronic signals, sensors and warning systems, safety still sometimes comes down to the knowledge and experience of the engineer at the controls.

    Those skills would have been critical on the curve where the New York-bound train derailed, killing eight and injuring more than 200 in the deadliest U.S. train accident in nearly six years.

    Instead of high-tech signals or automatic controls, engineers on that stretch of track have to rely on their familiarity with the route and a printed timetable they carry with them, not unlike engineers a century ago.

    "We're depending heavily on the human engineer to correctly obey and interpret the signals that he sees and also speed limits and other operating requirements," said David B. Clarke, a railroad expert at the University of Tennessee.

    The engineer of the train has told investigators that he does not recall the moments leading up to Tuesday night's crash.

    Brandon Bostian told the National Transportation Safety Board in an interview Friday that he felt comfortable with the train and was not fatigued.

    NTSB board member Robert Sumwalt also said the agency is now looking into whether the train was hit by a rock or some other projectile just before the derailment Tuesday.

    In the minute before the derailment, the train accelerated from 70 mph to more than 100 mph, even though the curve where it came off the tracks has a maximum speed of 50 mph.

    Experts say the railroad's signaling system would have slowed the train automatically if it had hit the maximum speed allowed on the line, but older cab-signal and train-control systems do not respond to localized speed restrictions.

    Investigators are also conducting drug tests. Bostian's lawyer has said he was not using drugs or alcohol.

    Preliminary checks have not found any pre-existing problems with the train, the rail line or the signals.

    Because of his experience, Bostian should have known the route, even if there's not so much as a speed limit sign on the side of the tracks, said Howard Spier, a Miami-based lawyer who is a former president of the Academy of Rail Labor Attorneys.

    "It's engrained in them. He knew it," Spier said. "I'm convinced he knew he was entering a speed-restrictive curve."

    The wreck has raised questions about positive train control, a system that automatically brakes trains going too fast. It is installed on the tracks where the train derailed, but it had not been turned on because further testing was needed, Amtrak President Joseph Boardman said.

    Boardman said this week that he intends to have the system running across Amtrak by the end of this year, as Congress mandated back in 2008.

    The system is already operating in other parts of the Northeast Corridor, the busy stretch of tracks between Boston and Washington. An older, less robust automatic-control system is in place for southbound trains in the same area as the derailment.

    The last wrecked railcars from the deadly accident were removed Friday as Amtrak prepares to resume service on the line next week.

    Also Friday, the first funeral was held for one of those killed in the wreck. U.S. Naval Academy midshipman Justin Zemser, 20, was laid to rest on Long Island. About 150 classmates from the academy joined his family and students from his New York City high school.

    Ware has highest opioid death rate in Massachusetts, state records indicate

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    Ware has recorded the greatest number of unintentional deaths the past two years among communities with a population of less than 10,000, preliminary figures from the Mass. Dept. of Public Health shows


    Ware Police Ware police show some of the 1,500 bags of heroin and other evidence found during a drug arrest.  

    WARE - The increasing number of accidental deaths from heroin abuse and related opioid drugs ravaging the state is hitting this community hard - with the highest number who die on a per-capita basis, according to an analysis of state and census figures.

    Ware also recorded the greatest number of unintentional deaths among communities with a population of less than 10,000.

    The town's per capita rate is almost 3.5 times more than the state average, is shown in preliminary figures from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health for 2013, the most recent year of complete data.

    Although the DPH cautions that the data sets are provisional, and include only the first nine months of last year, the numbers show five heroin or opioid-connected deaths here in 2013; and three in 2014 between January and September.

    Springfield, recorded 24 deaths in 2013 and 14 in 2014, through September of that year.

    All things being equal, with more than 15 times the population, 153,060 in Springfield versus 9,872 in Ware, according to the most recent census taken in 2010, the city would have experienced at least 75 opioid and heroin related deaths in 2013, were the proportionate death-rate from the drugs as steep as in Ware.

    Holyoke, with a population more than four times that of Ware, at 39,880, had 8 deaths in 2013, and 4 between January and September in 2014. Were that city experiencing the same rate as Ware, there would have been 32 deaths in 2013, instead.

    The DPH data shows Northampton, a city of nearly 30,000, experienced 3 opioid-related non-suicidal deaths in 2013 -- but the number jumped to 9, through September of last year.

    Outside of Ware, Boston area television station WCVB-TV reported this week, the next highest per-capita number of heroin and opioid-related deaths were all in the eastern part of the state. West Bridgewater had the second most deaths, proportionate to its population, followed by Lynn, Wareham, Salisbury, Fall River, Revere, Quincy, New Bedford, and Everett was 10th.

    A spokesman for the DPH said on Friday the agency's table showing the non-suicidal deaths for each city and town speaks for itself.

    "The rate of 14.5 deaths per 100,000 residents for 2013 was the highest ever for unintentional opioid overdoses and represents a 273 percent increase from the rate of 5.3 deaths per 100,000 residents in 2000," according to a statement from the state DPH.

    The Ware proportion is more than 50 deaths per 100,000, for 2013, according to an analysis of state and census figures.

    And at five deaths in a population of 9,872, the Ware rate is 349 percent more than the state average.

    The DPH research shows statewide 668 people died from the drugs in 2012; 888 confirmed in 2013; and 600 confirmed deaths last year. There were 89 deaths in Boston in 2013; and 64 through September of last year.

    In a footnote appended to the tables, the public health agency said: "Please note that 2013 death data are preliminary and subject to updates. Case reviews of deaths are evaluated and updated on an ongoing basis. A small number of death certificates have yet to be received from the municipalities and some have yet to be assigned cause-of-death codes." The data was updated on April 22.

    Alarmed at the high rate in Ware, senior medical personnel at Bay State Mary Lane hospital here, in coordination with the Northwestern District Attorney, the public school system and town police and fire officials, the town manager, along with the state and local health departments, formed a regional task force to address the issue last year.

    Last month Ware police arrested a 32-year-old woman they said was in possession of more than 1,500 bags of heroin, charging her with drug trafficking.

    They arrested more than 30 Ware residents ranging in age from 22 to 61, charging them with possession with intent to distribute illicit drugs, including heroin, following an 18-month investigation, in December 2012.

    In an interview Friday, Ware Deputy Fire Chief Ed Wloch said the department's use of Narcan has increased in the past 10 years, and it is administered at least 100 times per year. The agency operates the town's ambulance service.

    The Narcan drug quickly reverses the lethal effects of a heroin and opioid overdose.

    The deputy chief said there have been a number of instances when the treatment was used on individuals that stopped breathing and had no pulse.

    "We literally snatched them from death." Wloch said.

    There are spikes administering Narcan in Ware around major holiday's such as Christmas, and at the beginning of each month, he said.

    Boston Police Commissioner William Evans on Dzhokhar Tsarnaev death sentence: 'Our justice system worked today'

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    Evans, speaking to reporters, said he cannot help but recall a video of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev standing for four minutes behind the family of 8-year-old Martin Richards, who was killed, then placing the bomb.

    BOSTON — "Our justice system worked today," declared Boston Police Chief William Evans, hours after a federal jury sentenced Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to death.

    "It sends the message that the United States of America will not tolerate terrorism," Evans said.

    Evans and Watertown Police Chief Edward Deveau preside over the law enforcement agencies in the cities that Tsarnaev and his older brother Tamerlan attacked, when the brothers set bombs at the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon, then murdered a police officer and fled to Watertown, where they engaged in a shootout with the police. Tamerlan Tsarnaev was killed in the shootout, and his younger brother, barring appeals, will die by lethal injection.

    Evans, speaking to reporters, said he cannot help but recall a video of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev standing for four minutes behind the family of 8-year-old Martin Richards, who was killed, then placing the bomb.

    "I don't know how anyone can be that diabolical," Evans said.

    Although the Richards family came out in opposition to the death penalty, Evans said, "I hope the family gets some satisfaction out of what happened today."

    Deveau too said his thoughts are with the survivors. "What they went through pretty much in court every day and to see how dignified they were, how poised and prepared they were because of the prosecution team, I think they really showed the strength of Boston," Deveau said.

    Though independent reports have identified some problems with the response of the Watertown police to the shootout - one MBTA officer was critically injured by friendly fire and state police troopers were accidentally fired on - Deveau stressed the bravery of his officers. "My officers, for the first time in America, were shot at, had bombs thrown at them. They stood up and protected their community, protected greater Boston, and prevented those terrorists from going down to New York and killing more people," Deveau said. "They acted outside of their training to protect themselves and their communities."

    Deveau referred to Tsarnaev as "the younger brother." "I'll never say his name. He doesn't deserve to be mentioned. People will start to forget about him. We'll get back to being Boston," Deveau said.

    Deveau said his department made the decision to embrace whatever verdict the jury reached. He acknowledged the difficult and emotional experience faced by the jurors. "My thoughts are with them," Deveau said.

    Gallery preview 

    2015 Great New England Air Show: Fat Albert, Blue Angels' C-130, shows what he's got (photos, video)

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    Fat Albert isn't just a Bill Cosby comedy routine. It's the name given to the C-130T cargo plane that is part of the U.S. Navy Blue Angels Flight Demonstration Squadron, and there isn't anything funny about it. Watch video

    Fat Albert isn't just a Bill Cosby comedy routine. It's the name given to the C-130T cargo plane that is part of the U.S. Navy Blue Angels Flight Demonstration Squadron, and there isn't anything funny about it.

    Currently at Westover Air Reserve Base in Chicopee for the Great New England Air Show, Fat Albert and the Blue Angels arranged for about 40 air reservists and members of the media to get a first-hand view of the demonstration Fat Albert will perform for the show.

    After pulling the landing gear up at only three feet off the ground, the crew put Fat Albert through a grueling workout, climbing at 45 degrees, banking hard, diving toward the airfield and doing it all over again.

    Yes, there were screams aboard the aircraft. Yes, there were motion sickness bags used. But there was also the amazing feeling of pulling 2 g's and then in the next second becoming weightless. A dizzying "short field approach" signaled an end to the eight-minute flight, with "Bert" coming to a stop in an incredibly short distance. Gathered around Bert after the flight, Maj. Dusty Cook thanked the reservists for being wonderful hosts during the Blue Angels' stay in the area. He reminded them that even though there is some playful ribbing between the Marines and the Air Force, they all serve the same country.

    Video: Basking shark sighted off Cape Cod confirmed by Massachusetts State Police Air Wing

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    State police said the basking sharks are "gentle giants."

    WELLFLEET — At the request of a state Division of Marine Fisheries scientist, the Massachusetts State Police Air Wing launched off the Plymouth Air Force Base on Friday and confirmed a shark sighting off the Wellfleet shore.

    The shark was spotted about 200 yards off the shore and was confirmed to be a basking shark, about 25 feet long.

    State police said the basking sharks are "gentle giants," are not meat eaters and present no harm to beachgoers or boaters.

    They may be spotted off the coast, however.

    According to Sharks-World, basking sharks are very similar in style to the great white, so many people panic when they seek them.

    The basking shark gets its name due to being slow moving and enjoying time basking in the sun.

    The basking shark has been fiercely hunted and its conservation status is listed as vulnerable.


    Guardian angel in Hadley sends $1,000 check to pay pup's vet bill

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    The additional money will be used to care for another animal.

    HADLEY — By the end of Friday, Hadley police learned they had a guardian angel.

    hadley puppy.jpgMatilda, the puppy the Hadley Police Department found. 

    Sgt. Mitchell Kuc Jr. reported in an email that police "just got a check for $1000.00 (one-thousand) dollars from a Hadley resident who wishes to remain anonymous."

    That will cover the vet bills for a puppy in medical need that police had found.

    "We at the Hadley Police Department as well as Matilda's new family would like to thank everyone who supported the efforts to pay for her veterinary bills," Kuc said.

    Police had been looking to raise $1,000 since they put out a call for help on its Facebook page May 10. Earlier Friday, Kuc reported that police had raised $370 with checks coming in as far away as California.

    The dog has been in a foster home, pending permanent placement and while there, they learned she that she had "numerous health issues that needed to be rectified before placement. Her foster family (likely permanent family) has been doing a wonderful job nursing her back to health," according to the post.

    "Due to the numerous dogs that we care for over the course of every fiscal year, our very small animal control budget had already been long depleted by the time she came to us. When her picture was posted, she got close to 40k views."

    They wrote that if 200 out of those 40,000 donated $5 they could cover the bills.

    All of the money will be used for the dog's care; funds beyond that care will be used for another animal in need.


    Man who fired at George Zimmerman surrenders in Florida; guns recovered, police say

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    Matthew Apperson, 35, of Winter Springs, Florida, was charged Friday.

    A man who shot at George Zimmerman during a confrontation this week in Central Florida was charged Friday after he surrendered to police, authorities said.

    Matthew Apperson, 35, of Winter Springs, Florida, was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and firing a missile into an occupied conveyance.

    Apperson turned himself in Friday evening, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

    "After conducting numerous interviews throughout the week, detectives determined that Mr. Apperson did intentionally fire his weapon into the vehicle occupied by George Zimmerman without provocation," police spokeswoman Bianca Gillett said in a statement.

    Zimmerman, a former neighborhood watch volunteer, was acquitted of second degree murder in the 2012 death of Treyvon Martin. Zimmerman recently moved out of Florida but returned to the Orlando suburb for Mother's Day, his attorney said.

    Zimmerman was driving to a doctor's appointment Monday when Apperson, without provocation, intentionally fired his gun into Zimmerman's truck, detectives said. Apperson's attorney has said his client fired in self-defense.
    Zimmerman suffered minor injuries from flying glass and debris.

    Police recovered two guns from Apperson and one from Zimmerman, authorities said.

    There has been bad blood between the two since a road-rage incident in September over a traffic issue. Apperson alleged Zimmerman threatened to kill him then, but declined to press charges.

    Apperson later told police that he found Zimmerman's truck parked near the office where Apperson works. No charges were filed then after Zimmerman told police he had an appointment in the office park.


    Boston Marathon bombing victims have mixed reactions to death penalty for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev

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    While the jury in the trial of Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev had a unanimous opinion about his death, the victims of his acts had mixed reactions to the decision. Watch video

    BOSTON -- While the jury in the trial of Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev had a unanimous opinion about his death, the victims of his heinous acts did not share the same unanimity.

    Several victims delivered their reactions to the verdict on Friday outside The Daily Catch restaurant attached to Moakley Courthouse.

    Karen Brassard

    "Today feels different because it is more complete, I guess. I know that there is a long road ahead, there's going to be many, many more dates ahead. Now we can take a breath. Without even realizing it, you can take a breath. Now we can start from here and go forward and really feel like it is behind us."

    "Happy is not the word I would use. There is not a thing happy about having to take somebody's life. I am satisfied. I am grateful they came to that conclusion, it was the just conclusion."

    Liz Norden

    "I don't think there are any winners today. But there is justice."

    On if she'll attend Tsarnaev's execution: "I'll be there every step of the way."

    Michael Ward

    "He wanted to go to hell and he's gonna get there early."

    Melida Arredondo

    This seems like another burden that will drag on. Having spoken to some people that were not here, they were looking for some closure. I hope and respect that our group of survivors will keep in touch and be respectful and even further than that. We are truly in support of each other given differences in our lives and opinions."

    Dana Cohen

    "City was strong before but I think it's stronger now."

    "My family and I do support whatever decision the jury came out with."


    Boy, 3, in Florida shoots baby sister in face while inside car waiting for mom

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    The mother was talking to people in the parking lot when the boy picked up the small-caliber handgun and fired it once, hitting his sister, authorities said.

    A 3-year-old boy shot his 1-year-old sister in the face Friday as the two were left alone in a car in the parking lot of a Florida day care, authorities said.

    The girl is expected to recover from the 4:30 p.m. shooting outside the Sonshine Learning Center in the Gulf Coast city of Venice, just south of Sarasota, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune reported.

    The mother was talking to people in the parking lot when the boy picked up the small-caliber handgun in the compact car and fired it once, hitting his sister in the jaw and lip area, the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office said.

    Sheriff's Office Lt. Vince Mayer told the Herald-Tribune he didn't know where the gun had been stored or whether the mother had a license for it. Authorities did not immediately release names of the mother or the children.

    "It's a tragic accident and detectives are investigating see if at some point in time there will be any criminal charges," Mayer told WTSP-TV.

    The girl was flown to All Children's Hospital in St. Petersburg with injuries not considered to be life-threatening, authorities said.

    Deflategate fix: NFL plans to change ways footballs are handled, source says

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    The person spoke on condition of anonymity Friday night because details will be discussed at the owners' meetings in San Francisco next week

    The NFL plans to change guidelines regarding the way footballs are handled before games, a person familiar with the situation tells The Associated Press.

    The person spoke on condition of anonymity Friday night because details will be discussed at the owners' meetings in San Francisco next week. The procedural changes result from the "Deflategate" saga.

    The league wants to avoid the possibility that teams could tamper with footballs. Any change wouldn't require a vote from owners.

    Exactly what will be the new rules? There was some speculation Friday.

    "Regardless of whether or not the New England Patriots did anything to the footballs, it was inevitable that a rule change would have to take place," writes Rich Hill at patspulpit.com. "The league officials were extremely lax about protocol regarding the footballs and they didn't really follow the guidelines in place. It wouldn't be surprising if the new procedures involves the referees taking the balls from the lockers to the field, instead of utilizing a ball attendant."

    Tom Brady was suspended for four games and the Patriots were fined $1 million and docked a pair of draft picks after independent investigator Ted Wells, hired by the NFL, found that the Super Bowl champions used illegally under-inflated balls in the AFC title game. Brady has filed an appeal through the NFL Players Association.

    Current rules state that footballs are sent directly to teams. Equipment managers can brush them and even use a damp towel to rub off the oil used to preserve the leather to the preferences of each quarterback. The quarterbacks can even practice with the footballs during a game week as long as the footballs remain in good enough condition to pass the referee's pre-game inspection as a new ball. Each team brings at least 12 balls.

    The footballs must be delivered to the officials' dressing room 2 hours, 15 minutes before kickoff. The referee inspects each one, with a pump provided by the home team to adjust air pressure as needed. Footballs are required to have at least 12.5 psi and no more than 13.5 psi.

    The referee is the sole judge of whether a ball is fit for play and marks each one approved for the game. The rule says the footballs "shall remain under the supervision of the referee until they are delivered to the ball attendant just prior to the start of the game."

    Yesterday's top stories: Woman dies after being trapped under tractor-trailer in Worcester, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev sentenced to death, and more

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    Police have identified the 25-year-old woman who was stabbed death by her boyfriend Tuesday night.

    These were the most read stories on MassLive.com yesterday. If you missed any of them, click on the links below to read them now.

    1) Woman dies after trapped under tractor-trailer in Kelley Square crash [Lindsay Corcoran] Photo gallery above

    2) Dzhokhar Tsarnaev sentenced to death as jury reaches unanimous decision in Boston Marathon bombing trial [Garrett Quinn]

    3) Springfield murder victim identified as 25-year-old woman [Jeanette DeForge]

    4) NBA Draft combine notes: Stanley Johnson thinks Boston Celtics have interest, raves about Rondae Hollis-Jefferson [Jay King]

    5) Pet Project: Pets available for adoption in WMass shelters May 15 [Lu Feorino]

    Man who collapsed during Springfield pub run thanks medics in running shoes who saved his life

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    If you're going to have a heart attack during a pub run, make sure you're surrounded by registered nurses.

    NORTHAMPTON — If you're going to have a heart attack during a pub run, make sure you're surrounded by registered nurses.

    Brian Kane of Hadley says he owes his life to a team of first responders, including three nurses, an orthopedic surgeon and an off-duty cop who were participating in the ale-fueled athletic event in Springfield on the day in February that he went down.

    "I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for them," said Kane on Thursday at the Hampshire EMS annual awards banquet, where his life-saving team was honored.

    "Make sure you tell them we were all drinking beer," nurse Jessica Zepke advised a reporter.

    The intrepid medics in running shoes were Zepke, registered nurses Kayla Slessler and Loretta Kapinos, orthopedic surgeon Kelly Instrum, and Springfield police officer Thomas Lee.

    Thursday's banquet, which gathered first responders from around the region, served as an informal event reunion, as Kane and his family offered thanks to the bystanders, ambulance workers, firefighters and police who leaped to his aid and pulled him back from the brink of death.

    Hampshire Emergency Medical Services medical director Raymond Conway described the rescue effort as he honored the five on-duty ambulance staffers with American Medical Response, three paramedics with the Springfield Fire Department, two Springfield police officers and the quick-thinking bystanders.

    "It was a pub run; a charity event," said Conway. "A runner went down. The runner fortunately went down in front of three RNs. The patient was noted to be pulseless and in cardiac arrest."

    Conway described how the runners took turns administering CPR before Springfield police arrived with a defibrillator. Two ambulances arrived and staffers administered advanced cardiac life support protocols.

    Participants in the CPR effort rotated every two minutes, said Conway, with skilled coaching from the side to make sure the timing was appropriate.

    While being rushed to Baystate Medical Center, Kane experienced the return of spontaneous circulation, Conway said. He was treated at the hospital's intensive care unit, and was soon discharged in good shape. He's now participating in the cardiac rehab program at Cooley Dickinson Hospital.

    The proud teenage son of nurse Loretta Kapinos said he wanted to speak to a reporter. "My mom was one of the people who saved his life," Doug Kapinos told The Republican / MassLive. "My mom saved his life."


    Mary Serreze can be reached at mserreze@gmail.com


    Performance poet and body image activist Sonya Renee Taylor aims to inspire 2015 Hampshire College grads

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    Sonya Renee Taylor is founder of the movement The Body is Not an Apology.

    AMHERST -- Live boldly, live without apology, and do it now. Become a research student in the experiment of life. And don't defer your life loan; the cost is too high.

    That was the message imparted to the 2015 graduating class at Hampshire College Saturday by performance poet, activist, and "transformational leader" Sonya Renee Taylor.

    "I want you to raise your hand if you have student loans. Now I want you to raise your hand if you're planning to defer your student loan," Taylor began.

    Life is like a student loan, Taylor suggested, in that putting things off only results in higher interest payments -- not in cash dollars, but in sorrow and regret.

    "The principal and interest you will repay on your life loan is really about how long it takes you to learn the basic principle of living on this planet with your borrowed time and your borrowed body," she said.

    Taylor told of a man named Jack who was her client back when she worked in social services. Jack, an alcoholic, was dying. He spent the final days of his life trying to make amends with his wife and children, whom he had abused.

    "See, it was almost time to pay back his life loan. And Jack began to assess the true life and value of his family. Do you think Jack had lots of regrets and sadness? That perhaps some of his depression might have been a manifestation of how he treated his wife and kids in the past?"

    Jack's "interest" was the sadness and regret he had to live and die with for all the times he did not truly value his loved ones, she said.

    "When it's time to pay back what you borrowed, your interest rate can be profoundly high, meaning epic regret and pain for all the un-did, un-said, un-lived parts of your existence, or your interest rate can be low, meaning peace, love and completion," said Taylor.

    The poet described what she called the "waiting to become" syndrome, where a person promises to start living "when I lose weight; when I find a partner; when I get a great job."

    "What you put off today will cost you more tomorrow," said Taylor. "Deferment is always more expensive."

    Taylor told a heart-wrenching story about her own mother, who died more than two years ago at the age of 53: "She was a light and a laughter in the world; she was known for her peach cobbler, her helping spirit, and her two-thousand-watt smile."

    But she was also a woman who paid a "tremendously high interest on her life loan" because she did not appreciate and value herself, said Taylor: "After being abused, molested, and shamed for being a teen mother, she truly could not see that none of those things erased that she was magnificent."

    Taylor said her mother spent years in a crack cocaine addiction "trying to escape the pain of feeling like a failure;" paying the high cost of living without really living.

    Taylor said she had cut off contact with her mother before her death. "Losing her was one of the most intense pains I had ever experienced. I had to pay the interest on deferring time with my mother."

    Do the research in your life experiment now, said Taylor. Live boldly and unapologetically in the body you have, and in the life you have today, she added, and keep your interest rate low by acting in appreciation of what you truly value.

    "Your time in life's school can be a joyous experiment ... you are whole, perfect, and complete exactly as you are. Right now. Not tomorrow. Right now."

    Taylor is founder of the movement The Body is Not an Apology, and creator of the RUHCUS Project (Radically Unapologetic Healing Challenge 4 Us), a "30-day transformational healing action to address pain, shame, trauma, and fear in our lives."

    Mary Serreze can be reached at mserreze@gmail.com

    5 things to know about civil rights icon, US Rep. John Lewis, 2015 Elms College commencement speaker

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    The Congressman offered the keynote address at the 84th commencement of Chicopee's Our College of the Lady of the Elms on Saturday.

    1. Lewis grew up on a 110-acre farm in rural Alabama that his father, a sharecropper, purchased for $300 in 1944.

    2. He was responsible for raising the chickens on the farm, and as an aspiring preacher, assembled them along with his siblings and cousins as his "congregation."

    3. Lewis, now 75, was the youngest of the "Big Six" civil rights leaders and as a student organized the voter registration drives that led to the pivotal Selma to Montgomery marches that served as a crucible for African-American civil rights.

    4. One of the white men who beat Lewis during "Bloody Sunday," the most public and violent of the clashes in Selma in 1964, came to his Congressional office in 2009 to apologize.

    5. He gives a hell of a commencement speech.

    The Congressman offered the keynote address at the 84th commencement of Chicopee's Our College of the Lady of the Elms on Saturday. But he also came bearing something else: gratitude.

    "Without the Sisters of St. Joseph, I might not be standing here. So, thank you," Lewis said, referring to the fact that a faction of the sisterhood were the ones who cared for him when he was gravely injured during the march. During a stirring address, Lewis - a Democrat from Georgia who has been a member of Congress since 1987 - said he and his family grew up working to get ahead but in abject poverty nonetheless.

    Lewis told graduates that he began questioning segregation when he was just a boy in Troy, Ala. He saw signs flagging white facilities versus black facilities and wondered to his family about the fairness of them.

    "I would come home and ask why ... They would say that's the way it is. Don't get in the way. Don't get in trouble," he told a large audience at the MassMutual Center.

    In 1955, at age 15, he heard of the plight of Rosa Parks, which inspired him to get back in the way.

    "Rosa Parks inspired me to find a way to get in the way, to get in trouble ... good trouble, necessary trouble," Lewis said. "You must be bold, brave and courageous and find a way ... to get in the way."

    Lewis drew three standing ovations during his address.

    The class of 2015 turned out around 500 graduates at the onetime all-women's, Catholic college. It has since transformed into a co-educational school and Mayor Richard Kos said this was the largest class ever.

    Meghan Goodrow and Julianne Stasiowski earned valedictorian honors.


    Graduates urged to work toward their passion at 2015 Westfield State University commencement

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    Over 1,100 students walked the stage and were awarded degrees at Springfield's MassMutual Center, as Westfield State University held its 176th commencement.

    Over 1,100 students walked the stage and were awarded degrees at Springfield's MassMutual Center, as Westfield State University held its 176th commencement.

    Commencement speaker Brandon Stanton, creater of the New York City-based photojournalism project Humans of New York, received an honorary doctorate of human letters. Stanton, a former bond trader whose popular portraits and interviews of ordinary New Yorkers led to a book deal and United Nations-sponsored world tour, urged graduates to do the work necessary to pursue their passions, and not to wait for a flawless idea that may not come.

    "That's the decision that changed my life," he said. "Don't wait for the perfect."

    Westfield State University Class of 2015 President Richard Darrach described education at Westfield State as a transformative process for graduates and urged his classmates to remain compassionate and caring.

    "It is a reflection of hard work, dedication and wisdom," Darrach said. "This degree is a reflection of you wanting to better yourself and achieve a higher calling in life."

    The university also awarded honorary degrees to Barbara Erickson, president The Trustees of Reservations, and Timothy Brennan, executive director of the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission.

    Erickson, the first woman president of the 125-year-old preservation group, previously served as vice president at Save the Children and helped the charity raise $200 million in 2011. The Trustees of Reservation preserves natural and historic spaces across Massachusetts including Mount Warner in North Hadley and the Land of Providence agricultural reservation in Holyoke. She received an honorary doctorate of humanities.

    Brennan heads the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, a public agency that coordinates economic development and environmental protection among communities in the Pioneer Valley. He received an honorary doctorate of laws.

    In Stanton's speech, he described losing his job as bond trader in Chicago and the realization that he had spent his last two years thinking about money while doing a job he did not love.

    "At that moment I made a decision that completely transformed my life," he said. "I said for the next two months I'm going to do something that has nothing to do with money. I'm going to do something just because I love it."

    Stanton started doing photography full-time and moved to New York City with goal of taking 10,000 photographs of people on the street. That project eventually turned into Humans of New York - a blog of snapshots and intimate interviews with ordinary people that has amassed over 13 million fans on Facebook and led to a best-selling book.

    The ceremony also included a somber note. Westfield State University President Elizabeth Preston memorialized Westfield State senior and football player Eddie Fallon, who died in April. The gathered students gave a standing ovation when Stanton announced that Fallon would receive an posthumous degree.

    "Today we'd like to recognize Eddie's accomplishments by honoring him with a diploma," Preston said, before leading the crowd in a moment of silence for all members of the Westfield State community who died this year.

    Annual World's Largest Pancake Breakfast in downtown Springfield draws crowd despite weather

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    The weather may have kept some people away. But for the hundreds who did turn out, it was a day of music, fun and pancakes, of course.

    SPRINGFIELD — The threat of rain may have kept the numbers down at the World's Largest Pancake Breakfast in Springfield on Saturday, but it didn't dampen the spirits of the hundreds who did show up to wolf down plates of pancakes and bacon made by an army of volunteers.

    The Springfield High School of Science and Technology band blew away the rain. A number of other entertainers played up and down Main Street, including Christina Colon, a 17-year-old junior at Minnechaug Regional High School in Wilbraham and a student at the Community Music School of Springfield.

    Her clear voice adorned every molecule of morning air as she accompanied herself on a keyboard on Harrison Avenue. At Minnechaug, she is first flute in the school band and also plays guitar.

    The Springfield Police K-9 unit opened their cars for pet portraits during the Paws for a Cause fundraising effort for the unit. The Springfield Fire Department parked a ladder truck on Court Square so members of the public could get a closeup look at the large vehicle.

    The special guest of the morning was honorary chairman Michael Mathis, president of MGM Springfield, which sponsored the annual event.



    Former Lee Police Chief Joseph Buffis hospitalized, delays extortion trial in US District Court

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    Buffis, while awaiting trial on extortion charges, faces additional allegations of theft related to another police charity and his own church.

    SPRINGFIELD — Jury selection has been delayed for at least a day in the trial of Joseph Buffis, the former Lee police chief accused of extortion and fraud in connection with the alleged looting of a Christmas charity for poor children.

    Lori Levinson, a lawyer for Buffis, said Friday during a telephone conference with U.S. District Judge Mark G. Mastroianni that her client had been hospitalized. She was not specific about his condition.

    The long-awaited trial is expected to last three weeks in federal court in Springfield. Jury selection was scheduled for Monday was tentatively postponed until Tuesday, according to the court docket.

    Buffis is accused of stealing $120,000 from the toy fund for needy kids. His hospitalization came on the heels of new accusations that he also ripped off $40,000 from another police charity and his church, according to federal investigators.


    Busy weekend for Western New England University, as undergraduate, graduate & law students earn diplomas

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    All told, 924 students – 419 women and 505 men – were expected to receive undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees during weekend commencement activities on campus.

    SPRINGFIELD — It was a busy weekend for Western New England University, with undergraduate, graduate and law students expected to earn degrees during ceremonies on Saturday and Sunday.

    The undergraduate class of 2015 included 581 students – 234 women and 347 men – all of whom received diplomas during Saturday afternoon's commencement ceremony at the Sixteen Acres campus.

    Anthony Katagas, producer of the Academy Award-winning "12 Years a Slave" and a 1992 graduate of WNEU, was the commencement speaker. The Long Island, New York, native received the President's Medallion, which is awarded to individuals who have distinguished themselves in a particular field or in service to an important cause that has benefited their community, region or the nation.

    Katagas earned a bachelor's degree in Government from WNEU, where he was an accomplished member of the school's lacrosse team. He went on to study acting, photography and screenwriting at New York University and started Keep Your Head Productions in 1999, a production company geared toward independent films. He lives in New York City with his wife and daughters.

    WNEU President Anthony S. Caprio told members of the class of 2015 to not be afraid as they "forge ahead" into the world. "Don't be fearful. You have learned how to make a life. You've also learned how to make a difference," Caprio said.

    Thomas M. Cowin, an international business major from Hampden, delivered the student commencement speech. Cowin reminded classmates that their "next adventure starts today," as they head down separate paths with their "heads held high and (their) chests spread wide."

    The university's graduate and professional degree commencement ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, May 17. Former Sen. Gale Candaras, D-Wilbraham, who earned her law degree from WNEU, is the keynote speaker.

    Seven doctoral degrees, 110 law degrees, 68 pharmacy degrees, and 158 master's degrees are expected to be awarded during Sunday's ceremony, according to WNEU officials.

    All told, 924 students – 419 women and 505 men – were expected to receive undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees during weekend commencement activities on campus.


    Wilbraham voters approve debt exclusion to help fund new police station

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    Question 3, which passed by 1,262 to 879 votes, had asked whether the town should be allowed to exempt $4.2 million of the cost of the station from the Proposition 2½ levy limit.

    Click HERE for related coverage of Wilbraham's town election on Saturday.


    Police station update: The final vote total for the debt-exclusion measure for the town's proposed new police station was even higher than the preliminary total reported by the Police Department via social media. Voters decisively approved the $4.2 million debt exclusion for the $8 million project by 1,369 to 886 votes. Police originally reported that the measure had passed by 1,262 to 879 votes. This information has been added to the story below.



    WILBRAHAM — Town residents have authorized a debt exclusion to help fund construction of a new police station on Boston Road.

    Voters in Saturday's town election approved a debt exclusion for $4.2 million of the cost of the proposed $8 million police station, which will be built next to the newly renovated fire station. The rest of the cost will be paid out of available funds and bonding capability within the Proposition 21/2 levy limit.

    Question 3, which passed by 1,369 to 886 votes, had asked whether the town should be allowed to exempt $4.2 million of the cost of the station from the Proposition 21/2 levy limit.

    Prior to the vote, police Chief Roger Tucker had reminded town residents about the difference between a Proposition 21/2 override and a debt exclusion. A Proposition 21/2 override raises the tax levy limit permanently, while the debt exclusion for the police station exempts additional taxes from the levy limit for the life of a 15-year bond.

    The additional cost of the debt exclusion on an average $272,000 home in town would be $78 on the tax bill the first year, declining to $49 in year 15 of the bond, according to interim Town Administrator Thomas Sullivan. Once the 15-year bond is paid off, there is no additional impact to the voters.

    wilby police station rendering.jpgThis is an artist's rendering of what the new Wilbraham police station will look like. The station will be built on Boston Road next to the newly renovated Wilbraham fire station. 

    Roger Fontaine, chair of the police station building feasibility committee, said the new station is needed to provide enhanced security for police officers, the public and prisoners.

    "THANK YOU TO EVERYONE !!!!!!" the Wilbraham Police Department tweeted, shortly after the election results were announced.

    But not everyone was pleased with the outcome of the debt-exclusion vote.

    "That's just what we need – more taxes," Mark T. Warga posted on the Wilbraham police Facebook page. As of 9:30 p.m., Warga's comment was the only negative remark on the page, which featured mostly congratulatory remarks from town residents.

    "Well deserved for Wilbraham's finest," wrote Pat Vigneault.


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